Star Trek: Phoenix: S1E1 Lost
by Magnum Infinitum
Summary: Admiral Benedict B. Chan and his crew of the U.S.S. Phoenix (NCC-92063) discovered a gateway leading to the Galaxy NGC 5194, but are trapped and hunted by an enemy with little hope of returning home... A/N: Guys, I've changed the story a bit, and I would like to say I've appreciated the support and would love the support with this one too. Oh and please review. Cheers.
1. Characters

Characters

 _U.S.S. Phoenix_ (NCC-92063) crew:

 _-_ Admiral Benedict Benjamin Chan

Former commanding officer of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_ , but was given temporary command to investigate the gateway to the galaxy NGC 5194 by his wife Captain Rose Stephanie Hadley. He was a Eugenics War survivor during the 21st century and left to serve aboard the _Infinity,_ an exploration ship to help the peace effort. The _Infinity_ was lost orbiting Jupiter on Europa, where he was left in cryo-sleep until he was discovered by the _U.S.S. Constellation_ during the 23rd century. He was later transported to the 25th century as a Temporal agent.

 _-_ Captain Rose Stephanie Hadley  
Former second-in-command of the _U.S.S. Phoenix,_ and the wife of Chan. She was assigned to investigate a gateway, with her leading the operation, but she requested Chan to take the command with her returning to her previous post. She is also a Eugenics War survivor, but was originally older than Chan, being born during the late 20th century. She woke after Chan had passed her age from cryo-sleep on board the _Infinity_ and was discovered by the _U.S.S. Star System_ , her second-in-command being Chan.

 _-_ Doctor Connor Leonard McCoy  
Chief medical officer of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. He is also the grandson of Dr. Leonard H. McCoy of the original _Enterprise_ and a close friend to Chan since Starfleet Academy.

 _-_ Chandra Xerx  
 _U.S.S. Phoenix's_ Counselor. She is a female Betazoid born on Betazed. She is a close friend to Deanna Troi, who was a counselor serving on board _Enterprise-D_ and _Enterprise-E_. She joined Starfleet by Troi's recommendation after the death of her husband and daughter during a Klingon skirmish. The _U.S.S. Phoenix_ is her first assignment after graduation.

 _-_ Kudak'Atar  
Captured during the Iconian War, he was put on probation aboard the _Phoenix_ under the command of Chan. After serving his period, he requested to continue serving as tactical officer as he would be considered a traitor to his people, the Jem'Hadar. He has since been entitled a Starfleet officer and continued to serve under the command of Admiral Chan.

 _-_ Lieutenant Commander Kolez  
Chief of security aboard the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. He is a male Saurian born in the Vega Colony. After the Borg incursion, he joined Chan's crew.

 _-_ Chief Robert Thomas Matthew Turner Jr.  
Chief engineering officer of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. His grandfather is Thomas Matthew Turner, who served as chief of security on board the _U.S.S. Genesis,_ under the command of Captain Benedict Chan during his time in the 23rd century. He is also a close friend to Chan since the Academy.

 _-_ Commander T'Lera  
Chief science officer on board the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. She is a female Vulcan-Romulan born on Earth and raised on Vulcan. She was Chan's colleague in Starfleet Academy and graduated alongside McCoy, Lyhla and Turner.

\- Lieutenant Commander Lyhla T'hyph  
Operations officer of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. She is a female Andorian-Aenar born on Earth. She was another of Chan's colleagues during their time in Starfleet Academy. Her great-grandfather was Shran, an Andorian who continually encountered Captain Archer during the 22nd century.

\- Ensign Jerry Constantine  
Helmsman of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. He is a newly graduated Starfleet officer is his first assignment.


	2. Prologue

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Prologue  
Author's Notes: **I've decided that I should re-write the book from scratch, due to some unsatisfying chapters written for the previous** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **book. Some characters had their names re-written and new backgrounds have been added due to the new expansion of STO: Agents of Yesterday, which gave me new ideas. Hopefully I'll be able to finish this book faster so I can continue with the series, because I still have school.**

 **P.S. The formatting is rather weird, since I wrote this on a Pages program and copied it to a Microsoft Word program, because doesn't support the .pages format, so i changed it to an .odt format. Only problem is that they keep pushing some of my sentences to another space below (half of it) and the space between the sentences are very far apart compared to how Pages did it. So mind the formatting problem. Cheers.**

* * *

 _The black emptiness of space. A single starship sails across this part of the void, it's hull identifies it as the U.S.S. Hawking, a Federation starship from a planet called Earth. Isn't it curious that such tiny little insects could make such an impact to this galaxy? To drive off enemies and prevent all-powerful beings like the "Q"? It seems these beings pride themselves as advanced, prying their hands where no one should, ever wanting the knowledge to be powerful... Suppose these beings should be taught a lesson? A lesson that will prove them wrong? That would be fun... I think I'll just plop a little mystery for them to solve, lure one vessel of insects to play my little game... To put them in a situation that would be near impossible for them to return home._

 _Yes! They've seen my little portal, they are probing, ever cautious, how frustrating, but time isn't a factor when it comes to a being like me..._

 _Hmm... They are sending messages to their home planet, they're not going in... Perhaps a little encouragement should suffice to quicken the pace... Oh this will be amusing..._

 **Captain's log, stardate 93576.786, The** _ **U.S.S. Hawking,**_ **registration number NCC-93648 has detected a spacial anomaly on sensors near the borders of Klingon and Romulan space. We conducted a short-range scan on the anomaly and have concluded it is a gateway, to what, my science officer cannot conclude, but so far has not proven dangerous. Considering the fact the** _ **Hawking**_ **is an Akira-Class and a Tactical vessel, I have sent a subspace transmission to Starfleet for another ship well equipped for the task. Whether they will send one I am uncertain, we all are still recovering from the long war with the Iconians.**

"Captain?"  
Captain Fenton Chan looked up from his PADD at his first officer. Lt. Cmdr. Thompson sat at Fenton's right, the bridge crew are focused on their work, only the sound of the ship's engines and constant beeping of the sensors could be heard.

"Yes Number One?" Fenton responded.  
"What do you suppose is on the other side of this gateway?"  
Fenton smiled, his first officer is a true Starfleet officer, always ready to wonder about the mysteries of the universe. "It's definitely not a Terran Gateway, that's for sure, or a time portal, so it might bring one to another part of this universe."

Thompson sat quietly, staring at the anomaly, a large gaseous cloud of dancing light, apparently much larger than perhaps a Dyson Sphere. It's colors ranging from yellow, purple and blue, entwining in fantastic patterns.

"Captain, Starfleet says that the _U.S.S. Enterprise_ and _Voyager_ will rendezvous at our position," the _Hawking's_ communications officer announced, Fenton nodded.

"Sir! An unknown ship just appeared off the starboard bow!" Fenton's tactical officer said urgently. All eyes went to the viewscreen to see a small black dot among the bright lights flickering from the anomaly.

"Magnify." The viewscreen changed instantly to reveal a rather distorted image of a vessel unlike anything Fenton has ever seen. It's hull was hard to identify as it consisted of jagged spikes and pieces of metal sticking out from what appears to be thrusters. It was completely black with several green lights flickering throughout the ship. No signs of a warp engine could be detected by the naked eye.

"Ghastly looking ship I must say." Fenton muttered.  
"Sir, that's as close as we can get," the tactical officer announced.  
Fenton turned to look at the young man, the realization dawned on him that the ship is huge. The dot was now growing larger, the image slowly cleared, showing more prominent lines.

"Captain, they appear to be powering up weapons," the tactical officer said nervously, "looks like turrets coming out, I'm not sure, they look more like tentacles."

Fenton started with surprise. _Tentacles?_ He looked closely at the unusual ship. Sure enough, large, waving tentacles could be seen projecting out of the sides of anything solid, apart from the spikes and jagged metal. Bright light simultaneously flashed from the tips of the tentacles, producing missiles in irregular patterns.

"Shields!" Fenton shouted, bright lights exploded all around him, he felt heat uncomfortably close to his skin, before he could figure what was happening, he fell unconscious.

* * *

Thompson saw Fenton go down next to him, dropping beside the captain, he frantically checked his life signs. Fortunately, there is a pulse and Fenton is still breathing. Another shudder indicated the _Hawking_ taking another hit from the missiles.

"Damage report!" Thompson shouted. Suddenly, the lights flickered and went out. He could hear feet shuffling all around him as the ship's crew struggled to get power back on. "Where's the emergency power?" Thompson demanded, applying pressure to the wound on Fenton's side.

"Nothing's responding sir!" A reply from behind shouted back.  
A flash of white appeared in front of the dead viewscreen, a shapeless form could be seen amidst the bright, flickering light. Thompson stared at the light, fear suddenly sinking in for the first time in years. An 'O' shape seemed to appear at what appears to be it's head, possibly it's mouth. Out of it came two words: _Nahc Neb!_

Thompson gulped, the white form flashed and disappeared, he felt a pang of pain in the chest before darkness took him.


	3. Chapter 1

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: One  
Author's Notes: **I intend this series to be a bit more structured, so I did a story arc, and apparently, made it very different in the beginning to get the effects nearing the end. So It would be different compared to what you guys read in my first story under Benjabened2015. Love the support with the previous book, and I would very much appreciate the support with this rebooted story. I'll try to finish this series as fast as I can, considering I still have studies to do. Cheers.**

* * *

Admiral Jorel Quinn sat at a table in the conference room in Starfleet Headquarters. He was reading his PADD when the chime indicated someone at the door.

"Come in."  
The door opened to admit a woman of about 5' 6", with auburn hair and green eyes. She was in a Starfleet uniform and her pips indicated she is of Captain rank.

"Ah, Captain Hadley, please, sit down," Quinn said, "I'm sorry for the short notice, but this was rather urgent."

Rose Stephanie Hadley-Chan nodded in acknowledgement and sat down at one of the many chairs surrounding the conference table, "Thank you Admiral," she said courteously. "The others will be joining us in a moment," Quinn said after a pause.

Hadley cocked her head questioningly. Another chime at the door, and several high ranking officers entered the room after Quinn admitted them in. After Quinn invited them to sit, he took out the PADD he was reading. "Captains, Admirals, as you already know, we have been constantly attacked by the Borg, the Undine and the Tal Shiar," Quinn announced, "and we have recently ended the war between the Alliance and the Iconians thanks to Admiral Chan and the crew of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_ , but we have a new problem."

Hadley looked around the room, all the officers here were just in the dark as she is.  
"89 hours ago, we received a message from the _U.S.S. Hawking_ stating that they've found an anomaly at the borders of Klingon and Romulan space. It turned out to be a gateway leading to an unknown location in this universe, it has opened and revealed a new enemy."

Several murmurs could be heard from several of the officers around the table.  
"The _Hawking_ has been destroyed, all hands have been lost with the exception of several crew members the _Enterprise_ has been able to save from the wreckage," Quinn pressed at the console on the table beside him revealing a holographic image of the alien vessel.

"This is the vessel the _Hawking_ recorded during it's encounter, the _Enterprise_ was able to recover several of the _Hawking's_ recordings, when rescuing the survivors. Apparently, the aliens didn't put much effort, but sent off a few missiles." Quinn paused, looking around, the officers around were staring intently at the deadly looking ship, "The _Enterprise_ and the _Voyager_ are both monitoring this anomaly with extreme caution to determine where the alien bastards went, probably back through that portal, but we have to determine whether we could shut this gateway to prevent anymore attacks."

Several nods of assent was all it took for Quinn to continue, "Admiral Tuvok suggested we send one ship to determine if there is an off switch, and I quite agree, but we don't have many ships at our disposal, due to the fact the Borg is still uncomfortably close to Sector 001 again lately."

"I'd like to volunteer," Hadley said raising a hand.  
Quinn looked at her quietly.  
"The _U.S.S. Phoenix_ has just finished her refitting and will be ready to set course again," Hadley added.

"If I may," Admiral Jason Smith said, "the _U.S.S. Phoenix_ may just have finished refitting, but she is running on a small crew with no senior officers but Chief Robert Turner Jr., this anomaly and it's occupants seems rather dangerous and urgent, and gathering a full complement would take too much time, by then the aliens could renew their attack."

Several officers murmured in agreement.  
"I'd like to volunteer. The _U.S.S. Equinox_ is more than capable to handle this mission," Smith added, his countenance was calm, but Hadley could definitely see the jeering smile on his face.

Quinn glanced at both officers, "Very well, the _Equinox_ will depart in 24 hours for the borders of Klingon and Romulan space and rendezvous with the _Enterprise_ and _Voyager_."

Smith nodded, "Thank you sir, I very much-."  
"I can get you a full complement for the _Phoenix_ within 12 hours sir," Hadley interrupted. Smith started and glanced towards the British woman.  
Quinn raised an eyebrow, "Very well, who would you have serving as your second-in-command?"

Hadley took a breath, "I'd like to serve as second-in-command."  
"But you're the commanding officer, surely you don't want to be demoted?" Quinn questioned.

Hadley smiled, "I'd like to recommend Admiral Benedict Chan to have the command of the _Phoenix_."

Several murmurs were heard among the Admirals. Smith raised his pen, Quinn nodded to allow Smith to speak.

"I'd like to remind everyone here that Admiral Benedict Chan is to teach at the Academy and prepare the cadets for threats such as the Tal Shiar, Undine, Iconians, Devidians and the Na'Kuhl. Reassigning him could put us at a disadvantage at the Academy."

"Many of you have encountered the Tal Shiar and the Undine. The Devidians Admiral Riker can cover during Admiral Chan's absence. The Iconians any of you can cover as we all went through the Iconian War and the Na'Kuhl can be referred to Admiral Archer's report dating back to the 22nd Century." Hadley argued.

Quinn smiled, "Very well, I'll expect to see you within 24 hours Captain Hadley, with a full complement for the _Phoenix_."

"Thank you sir," Hadley replied.

* * *

 _Ben... Don't leave me! Ben!_

Benedict Benjamin Chan woke with a start, covered in perspiration. Gulping in large amounts of air, he looked around frantically, seeing only the quarters he was given at the academy. The quarters were simple, only a few of his personal effects lay at the study desk at the other end of the room. His Admiral uniform lay neatly folded on an armchair near the window and his sheets twisted around his person.

"Ah... Shit..." Chan muttered as his breathing became more regular, realizing it was a nightmare. He turned to look at his chronometer, showing that it was 0700 hours. The chime at the door announced that someone was at the door. He got up to put on a shirt.

"Come in."  
The door opened and Hadley walked in and smiled. Chan gave an effort to smile, "Hey Rose," he said frankly.

Hadley raised an eyebrow and frowned, "You've had nightmares again, do you want to talk about it?"

"What? No, we don't nee to talk about it, I'm fine ok?" Chan said defensively.  
Hadley sighed, "You never talk to me about your problems, Ben. We were both there during the Eugenics War, We're both not from this timeline, so why can't you talk to me?"

Chan stared intently at her, his eyes darting from one point to another. His features soften considerably, "Because it's the past, I don't need to bring it up again and I'm fine."

Chan walked up to her and hugged her warmly, giving her a small peck on the cheek, "But thank you," he whispered.

Hadley sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder, "Fine, but if it happens again, you have to tell someone. Ok?"

Chan nodded, "Ok."  
"So, what can I get for you?" Chan suddenly said, breaking the embrace and walking to the replicator unit, "Coffee? Tea perhaps? Though the replicator still makes rather flat coffee compared to real coffee," Chan said as he made a face at the replicator.

"I'm fine, thank you," Hadley decline politely.  
"Ok then, so, uh, why pop by all of a sudden?" Chan said as he spun around to face her. Hadley smiled, "The _U.S.S. Phoenix_ is to rendezvous with _Enterprise_ and _Voyager_. I've recommended you to command her for this mission."

Chan opened his mouth slowly to say something, but stopped. "Wow... that's very thoughtful of you," Chan hesitated, "how did you get Quinn to reassign me?"

Hadley laughed, "It's temporal, but hey, you'll get to fly in a starship again, if only one more time."

Chan chuckled.  
"I'll see you at 0930 hours," Hadley said as she left the room. She paused at the doorway,

"You sure you don't want to talk about it?"  
Chan smiled wearily and shook his head, "It's alright."  
Hadley dipped her head slowly, "Well then, I'll see you in several hours on board the _Phoenix_ , Connor will meet you at Space Dock." Chan chuckled, "Doc's still in Starfleet?" Hadley rolled her eyes and left the room.

* * *

Doctor Connor Leonard McCoy sat on a bench reading the PADD he was given by Hadley earlier. _Why the hell did I agree to this?_ McCoy thought, grumbling. Peering over the PADD, he noticed a Ferengi child staring at his luggage, McCoy looked down at his duffel bag, quickly withdrawing it closer towards him to secure it. The Ferengi child continued to stare at the duffel bag, making McCoy rather nervous. "What are you looking at?" McCoy demanded, but the Ferengi was unmoved and continued to stare at his duffel bag.

"Hey Doc," McCoy turned around and huffed as Chan sat down next to him.  
"I'd keep your bag close if I were you," McCoy said, Chan raised an eyebrow. "Ferengi has theft written all over him," Chan followed McCoy's gaze and saw the Ferengi staring at both of them now.

"Oh," Chan mouthed before he too brought his duffel bag closer to him.  
"So how have you been Ben? Settling in at the Academy?" McCoy sneered.  
Chan chuckled, "Nope, what about you? I thought you resigned?"  
McCoy groaned, "Well, your wife came to me and said that I owe her a favor, and I hate owing people favors. Let's just get this over with, so I can head back to Georgia."

"Admiral Benedict Chan and Doctor Connor McCoy?" A pleasant looking Trill female approached the two.

"That's us," Chan replied.  
"Would you please follow me?"  
The two got up and followed. The group entered the station's hangar bay, and entering a shuttle, strapped themselves in. The woman sat at the pilot's seat and began working on the controls.

Chan leaned towards McCoy, "Uh... Doc? Why are we flying in a shuttle, when we have transporters?" He whispered.

McCoy cocked his head, "Dunno, but it sure beats tearing your particles apart and shooting them off into space."

Chan rolled his eyes and diverted his attention to the process.

* * *

" _Ben, are you alright?" Ben looked up to find a woman, perhaps a few millimeters taller than him, with soft brown eyes and goldish, brownish hair. She had a worried expression on his face, apparently something must have happened._ _Chan got up and looked around, he was in a street, fire was burning all over the place. He turned his head and stared at the woman._

" _Ann," Chan whispered.  
Ann sighed in relief, "I thought you were gone for second, don't scare me again, ok?" Chan nodded, several shouts were heard in the background, followed by gunfire and __booming noises. Ann began edging her way to another alleyway, "Come on! We have to go!"_

 _Chan turned and saw a large tank emerge from the fire, several armored men marched alongside the behemoth. The foot soldiers spotted Chan and began rushing towards him, guns were raised and they began shooting._

" _Ben!"  
Chan turned and ran, he felt heat searing into his face, forcing him to lose his senses. All __of a sudden, he lost his footing, before he knew it, something hard collided into him._

* * *

Chan woke with a start again, looking around frantically. McCoy appeared and took out some equipment from Chan's forehead.

"Wha... What are you doing?" Chan mouthed, barely audible.  
"You're going through memory trauma again, Ben," McCoy sat at his seat, staring intently at his tricorder, "you dozed off for about an hour."

Chan blinked, "Did Rose tell you to be my babysitter?"  
"Nope, but I've noticed you're short attention span lately and waited for any effects," McCoy plugged the monitor onto the tricorder, "But Rose did warn me about your recent fits."

Chan opened his mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the shuttle's pilot, "Admiral, we're now approaching the _U.S.S. Phoenix_."

Chan unbuckled and moved to the co-pilot's seat, McCoy stayed behind, engrossed in his readings.

The _Federation starship U.S.S. Phoenix_ , NCC-92063 looked very different the last time Chan saw her. Her pylons were extending forward instead of backward from the secondary hull, apparently to make the _Sovereign-Class_ look sleeker than it did before. The warp nacelles were longer too, thinning out at the rear.

"So this is the refit designs?" Chan whispered.  
The pilot nodded, taking a short glance to watch the ship's former captain stare gaping at her new features.

"What an ugly ship," McCoy muttered at the back as he turned to look at what the fuss was all about, "the nacelles are too long, and did they paint the ship white?" Chan rolled his eyes.

" _U.S.S. Phoenix_ , this is shuttle 7, requesting permission to dock," the Trill female intoned into her mic.

" _Shuttle 7, this is the U.S.S. Phoenix, NCC-92063, you are cleared for landing,"_ was the response, Chan thought he recognized the voice.

The pilot maneuvered smoothly towards the ship's rear, easing her way into the opened hangar. Activating the landing gears, she slowly eased onto the hangar floor, barely a thud could be heard.

Chan paused and looked around, "Nice flying," he commented as he got up to pick up his duffel bag. McCoy followed behind and exited the shuttle.

"Admiral!" Chan turned to see Robert Thomas Matthew Turner Jr. approaching. "Bob, it's good to see you again," Chan grasped the engineer's hand and shook it vigorously.

"Keeping the mustache I see," McCoy interrupted from behind, studying Turner carefully, "looks damn ugly still."

Turner chuckled as McCoy smiled and shook Turner's hand, "Dr. McCoy," he acknowledged.

"I see you're all getting reacquainted," Hadley interrupted, " _Admiral_ , glad to have you back."

Chan smiled, Hadley smiled back, seeing that they recently met several hours ago, there was no need for long greetings. She gestured for them to follow her to a turbolift.

The lift's door closed behind them as McCoy entered last.  
"Bridge," Hadley commanded, the elevator began moving, making a low humming sound. McCoy eyed Chan and Hadley, studying them, "You guys act as if you're not married, trying to look professional?" he asked.

Both Hadley and Chan chuckled.  
The turbolift doors opened to admit the group on the bridge. Several eyes lit up and smiles were exchanged. Chan and Hadley headed for the Captain's ready room, while McCoy stayed to inspect the stations, beginning several conversations with some of the bridge officers.

* * *

Chan entered the ready room, looking around. "Doesn't look like it changed," he commented. He look down to find his cat Daisy rubbing against his legs.

"Hey Daisy, trip went well for you?" Chan reached to scratch the feline's chin. "Ben," Hadley called, "Quinn wants to debrief you before we depart drydock."  
Chan nodded, "Ok, I'll see you on the bridge."  
Hadley reached out and pulled Chan close, exchanging a brief kiss. Pulling apart to breathe, Hadley smiled and walked out of the room.

Chan looked around and smiled. Chan sat at the desk and turned on the monitor, Quinn's bearded face appearing.

"Admiral Quinn," Chan acknowledged.  
"Admiral Chan," Quinn replied, "here's what happened."


	4. Chapter 2

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Two  
Author's Notes: **Here's the next chapter of S1E1 of** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **. I hope you guys enjoyed it so far, please write a review to express your thoughts, but go easy on me please, I'm working at the best of my abilities. Cheers.**

* * *

 **Admiral's log Stardate 93576.88, The** _ **U.S.S. Phoenix**_ **, NCC-92063 has departed from drydock 2 hours ago. We are on our way to rendezvous with the** _ **Enterprise**_ **and** _ **Voyager**_ **at the borders of Klingon and Romulan space. Captain Hadley has given me the command of the** _ **Phoenix**_ **one last time, with her serving as my second-in- command. It was nice to see many familiar faces among the crew, many I've grown attached to, and I haven't seen since the end of the Iconian War.** **I am worried about my brother Fenton, the commanding officer of the late starship** _ **Hawking**_ **, which was destroyed by an unknown alien vessel that came out of the anomaly. I am told that he was among the survivors along with his first officer Jack Thompson and chief of security, Brittany Mayes, the only survivors of his senior officers and that he was injured during the incident. I'll be beaming aboard the** _ **Enterprise**_ **to discuss with Admiral Tuvok and Captain Va'Kel Shon about how we should proceed.**

"Energize," Captain Shon said to the technician at the controls. The Andorian captain listened as the transporter began to hum, heralding the shimmering lights that appeared at several transporter pads. The shimmering lights faded, revealing Chan, a male human and a female Vulcan officer.

"Benedict, it's good to see you again," Shon said as he stepped forward to shake Chan's hand. Chan smiled and grasped Shon's hand, "Va'Kel, pleasure."

Chan turned around and gestured to the other two officers, "I'd like to introduce to you my Science officer, T'Lera. She'll be here to discuss about the anomaly."

T'Lera nodded and raised her hand to form the Vulcan salute, Shon brought his hand up and repeated the gesture.

The other officer stepped off the pad, and watched Shon do the Vulcan salute, "Captain, you'd better show me how you split your fingers like that," he said sarcastically.

Shon started causing Chan to chuckle, "Captain, I'd like to introduce my chief medical officer, Dr. Connor Leonard McCoy."

Shon raised an eyebrow, "The grandson of Dr. Leonard McCoy?"  
McCoy raised an eyebrow, "Guess nobody told you?" McCoy smiled and extended his hand, "nice to see you Captain."

Shon accepted the hand, "Well Dr. McCoy, welcome aboard the _Enterprise_."  
Chan cleared his throat, "Uh, Connor, would you go and check on the survivors? I'll see at Sick Bay when we have finished in the conference room."

McCoy nodded and left with an Ensign officer waiting to escort him to Sick Bay. Chan and T'Lera followed Shon as they headed for a turbolift.

"Deck 15," Shon commanded. The hum of the turbolift filled the elevator.  
Chan and T'Lera followed Shon quietly through the corridors of the Odyssey-Class starship. The conference room was simple, with a long, curved table for officers to converse and share thoughts on. Several model starships were hung on the wall. Already seated at the table are Admiral Tuvok, Lt. Cmdr. VanZyl, Commander Samuel Winters, and the holographic Doctor from _Voyager_.

Chan nodded a greeting and sat down at the other end of the table, T'Lera followed suit.

"Admiral Chan, Starfleet Command has given us permission to lend you the _Delta Flyer_ , if there is to be a case to use shuttle crafts," Tuvok said matter-of-factly, "Captain Paris sends his regards," the dark Vulcan added hesitantly.

Chan nodded, "Thank you Tuvok, tell Tom I'll look after her."  
"At 0700 hours, the _Phoenix_ will enter the gateway. Once you are through, _Voyager_ shall begin communicating with you by sending the Doctor to you through subspace," VanZyl said. The Doctor apparently seems rather concerned as he began tapping the table when VanZyl said this, Chan noticed.

Chan nodded, "Very well, what have we got so far as to protect ourselves from the gateway as we cross?"

"The gateway is not our usual portal the Krenim, Terran Empire and Nakuhl have been using during their skirmishes," T'Lera put out, "it is emitting a considerate amount of radiation that any unshielded ships would be burnt out."

Chan dipped his head and frowned, seeing there is no remarks from any of the officers around the table, T'Lera continued, "As long as shields remain at 50% power, our hull platings shall be able to handle the stress."

Shon nodded, "Ok then, Winters, go with VanZyl and help her patch the Doctor to the _Phoenix_. Admiral, I'll escort to you to Sick Bay to visit the survivors."

Chan nodded and smiled at everyone round the table before leaving the room.

* * *

Fenton woke with a start, he looked around and stared at the familiar surroundings of a Starfleet ship's Sick Bay. Looking up, he noticed a male Vulcan staring intently at the monitor above him. Fenton tried to move, but found himself strapped to the bed.

"Captain Chan, might I suggest calming down? I'd like to run a few more tests," the Vulcan said.

"Where... Where am I?" Fenton whispered, feeling dizzy.  
"You're on board the _U.S.S. Enterprise-F_ , your vessel was destroyed by an unknown alien spacecraft. It would be advisable for you to rest, Admiral Benedict Chan will be checking on you in a moment," the Vulcan intoned.

"Hey Doctor! This one here's got an infection!" Fenton turned his head to see another doctor over another bed, staring at the monitor. He recognized the patient lying unmoving under the monitor.

"At this time, it is uncertain whether it is an infection, Doctor McCoy. Commander Thompson's body has behaved rather unusual for the past 48 hours," the Vulcan replied.

"How... How long have I been out?" Fenton demanded.  
The Vulcan turned and studied the _Hawking's_ captain, "Approximately 120 hours." Fenton's eyes widened. He tried to look around a bit more to see if anymore of his crew members were in the room.

"Captain, it would be advisable to remain still," the Vulcan interrupted, placing his hands to keep Fenton's head still.

Fenton closed his eyes and took a breath, "Any of my senior officers alive besides me and Jack?" Fenton asked, opening one eye.

The Vulcan cocked his head, placing his hands behind his back, "Your chief of Security, Lieutenant Brittany Mayes, is the only one other than Thompson and yourself. There are 12 survivors overall."

Fenton winced, feeling the weight of the people he couldn't protect on his shoulders. "Hey Savel! He's got white veins popping out of his left chest," the one Savel called McCoy said, "not any symptom I've ever seen before. I think it's an infection!"

Savel moved to join McCoy, leaving Fenton to strain his ears to listen to the two doctors' conversation.

Two different faces appeared in front of him, one he recognized as his brother Ben and the other Captain Shon. Chan smiled, "Hey bro, how're you feeling?"

Fenton breathed out heavily, "Like a shuttlecraft landed on my head."  
Chan chuckled, "Doctor Savel thinks you'll be able to walk and give orders again within a couple more days."

Fenton sighed, "Ok," he wheezed.  
"Ben," McCoy called. Chan turned and frowned at McCoy's troubled face, "you'd better come and have a look at this," McCoy said.

Chan joined McCoy with Shon behind. Thompson was beginning to breathe heavily, his chest pumping rapidly. The monitor began to wail as his breathing became more erratic. Suddenly, Thompson ceased to function at all, the monitor went silent.

Chan lowered his eyes, crossing himself. McCoy stared intently at Thompson's face, studying for any new symptoms. Thompson's eyes opened suddenly, showing black eyes. His breathing came back, but the monitor remained silent. His head darted left and right, looking around erratically, finally, he slowed and stared at Chan, licking his lips. Shon, McCoy and Chan backed off as they saw his tongue was black. Savel raised an eyebrow.

"What sort of devilry is this?" McCoy muttered as he stared wide eyed at Thompson.

" _Nahc Neb..._ " Thompson whispered, his voice hoarse.  
"Fascinating," Savel remarked. McCoy rolled his eyes.  
Chan approached Thompson, "What is your name?"

Thompson stopped and cocked his head and smiled evilly, " _I have no name... Not in a long time..._ "

"Then you're not Jack Thompson?"  
Thompson chuckled hoarsely, " _Oh no, Jack is no longer accessible... He's long gone,_ _gone to meet his maker..._ " Thompson licked his lips again, revealing rotting teeth.

"Then who are you?" Chan asked.  
" _Do you want to know that badly, Ben?_ " The creature whispered, smiling evilly again, " _Oh_ _yes,_ " it said when Chan reacted to his name being mentioned, " _I know you all too well. You're not from this timeline... You're an outsider to these people_."

"What are you babbling about?" McCoy demanded.  
The creature ignored McCoy and continued, " _Want to know how I know you?"_ It chuckled, black blood flew out of its rotting mouth, " _Come find me on the other side..._ " With that, it breathed its last gasp and went silent.

McCoy reached down and touched the rotting face of Thompson, "weird," McCoy muttered, "it looks like it's been rotting for years."

Savel withdrew from the body, "Captain Shon, I'd like to run an autopsy on the body." Shon nodded, Chan glanced at Shon and Savel, he was beginning to feel nervous and anxious.

"What's going on?" Fenton called out from his bed.  
McCoy waved him off, "Later," he huffed as he examined the body.  
Shon approached Chan, "Perhaps we should talk somewhere else," he suggested.

* * *

"'Come find me on the other side.' You don't suppose he means the gateway?" Chan asked as they walked through the corridors of the _Enterprise_. T'Lera followed behind, alongside McCoy. The autopsy of Commander Jack Thompson failed to determine what was the cause of Thompson's demise. McCoy concluded it was something spiritual that caused Thompson to be possessed, although Savel and T'Lera remained skeptical.

"It is possible, as Thompson was fatally wounded during the alien's attack," T'Lera suggested as they entered the transporter room, "and the gateway is the source of the aliens."

Chan nodded, "I guess we'll have to find out when we get to the 'other side.'"  
The _Enterprises'_ chief engineer Kirayoshi O'Brien and Tuvok were waiting by the console when the group entered the room.

Chan, T'Lera and McCoy stepped onto the transporter pads. "Wish us luck," Chan said, Shon smiled and nodded to signal O'Brien to transport them. O'Brien began working on the transporters.

"Ready to transport, sir," O'Brien announced.  
Shon nodded and turned to Chan. Chan closed his eyes and took a breath, "Ok chief, we're ready. Energize."

The hum and chirp of the transporters filled everyone's ears, heralding the bright, shimmering lights that covered Chan, T'Lera and McCoy. The _Enterprise's_ transporter room is replaced by the _Phoenix's_ transporter room. Turner is at the controls with two other officers.

"Well, that went well," Chan remarked as he stepped of the transporter pad.  
McCoy huffed and rolled his eyes, leaving the room. T'Lera followed and left the room for the bridge. Chan joined Turner and the other officers.

"Bob, prep the _Phoenix_ for departure, see if you can divert power from weapons to shields. Maintain shields above 50% at all cost," Chan said. Turner nodded and left the room.

"Admiral, if I may," one of the officers, a female betazoid, announced, "I'd like to have a word with you in private."

Chan nodded and turned to the other officer, a tall, well-built male Saurian, "Kolez, make sure your security crew are on standby if we are to be attacked or to be beamed."

"Aye, sir," Kolez acknowledged, leaving Chan and the female betazoid.  
"Yes? What's wrong?" Chan asked after a pause as the transporter room's door closed behind the retreating security officer.

Chandra Xerx, the _Phoenix's_ new counselor approached Chan, "Admiral, Captain Hadley informed me of your nightmares. I thought it would be advisable if I approached you before we depart."

Chan frowned, "Rose told you?"  
Xerx nodded, "Not by choice. As you are aware, I am a betazoid and have telepathic abilities. Mind you, I did not pry into the Captain's, or your mind, I merely noticed Hadley's troubled emotions and asked what was wrong. She decided to confide in me, as I presume am one among several close friends who know of your mental illness." Xerx paused, studying the Admiral's face, "Admiral, she is concerned about you."

Chan bit his lip and sighed, "Chandra, can I call you Chandra? You can call me Benedict, or Ben," he added with a smile.

Xerx nodded, smiling, "Yes you can, and I appreciate that very much. I am honored to serve under your command, you've done so much for the Federation."

Chan smiled and nodded, "Thank you," he turned to walk for the transporter room doors, "so Chandra, I will tell you that I am fine, as I've said to the others."

Xerx followed Chan as they headed for the turbolifts, the doors opened, and letting an officer to exit, went inside.

"Bridge," Chan ordered, the turbolift vibrated and hummed as it began to move. He turned to look at the small woman, "But I thank you for your honesty," he said.

Xerx nodded, "Your welcome."  
Chan smiled and turned to face the door, "So, you're the new counselor?"  
Xerx nodded.  
"The last counselor was killed during the Iconian War, after that the _Phoenix_ went to drydock for refitting. I'd like to know my senior officers, so if you don't mind me asking, tell me about yourself?"

Xerx smiled, "I was born on Betazed, as you can probably guess. I got married and had a child, those were happy times, I never intended to leave, but things weren't meant to last. After the loss of Romulus, the Federation became divided and war broke out between the Klingons and the Federation. We were caught in a cross-fire during one of the Klingon's skirmishes on Betazed. My husband and daughter didn't make it, I woke up to find myself on board the _U.S.S. Enterprise-E's_ Sick Bay."

Chan nodded and watched Xerx in sympathy, "I know what that feels like, I'm sorry." Xerx looked up and smiled, "Thank you, Ben. Anyway, to make the story short, I got to catch up with my childhood friend Deanna Troi, who was counselor of Picard's _Enterprise_. She recommended I should join Starfleet and become a counselor, so here I am."

Chan nodded and extended a hand, "Well then, welcome aboard the _U.S.S. Phoenix_." Xerx accepted the hand with smile, her soft hands grasping Chan's and shook it gently,

"Thank you."  
The turbolift's door opened with a _swoosh_ , Chan walked to the center, taking his place at the command chair. Hadley was sitting at his right, Xerx sat at his left. The ship's and Starfleet's only Jem'Hadar officer, Kudak'Atar stood behind, working at the tactical station, "Admiral, we are prepared to depart on your orders," he announced gruffly.

Chan nodded and signaled Constantine, "Ensign, take us out."  
Constantine piloted the Sovereign-Class starship towards the anomaly, it's bright, swirling lights filled the viewscreen, "We're in position and ready to warp," the young pilot said. Chan paused, half expecting the creature in Thompson to appear, "Let's roll," he said. The _Phoenix_ disappeared, leaving behind a streak of red and blue.


	5. Chapter 3

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Three  
Author's Notes: **Another Chapter of** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **! This one is rather short so excuse** _ **moi**_ **for that. Please review this book and express your thoughts, I'd very much appreciate it, but remember to go easy on me. I'll try to finish the series as soon as I can. Cheers.**

* * *

The entire bridge began to vibrate, the hull plating seems to be screaming in pain at the strain she was going through as the _Phoenix_ travelled through the gateway, rolling around through a sort of subspace tunnel. Chan saw 3 dimensional images of themselves leaping out of the original person or thing. Clutching onto the arms of his seat, he stared intently at the viewscreen as the _Phoenix_ went through the gateway. The vibration was becoming more intense. Chan sensed they were coming to the end of their journey.

"Mr. Constantine, bring us down to warp factor 2!" Chan shouted over the rumble, "End of the line!"

Constantine winced, opening his eyes and worked on the controls. The noise was still as loud, but the deck's vibration was decreasing. Slowly, the bright lights traveling into the bridge from the viewscreen began to dwindle. The vibration stopped and the rumbling noise ceased to deafen the crew's ears.

Chan slowly stood as all eyes stared at the viewscreen. Multiple stars could be seen, forming several unfamiliar constellations. A nebula was seen several hundred klicks away from the gateway.

"Where are we?" Chan whispered, eyes darting to see anything familiar to determine where they are in the galaxy. He turned around and glanced at the ceiling, "Computer," he commanded, "identify our surroundings."

The chime of the computer indicated the Federation admiral that the computer was working, "Several stars within 50 light years have been identified. They are part of the constellation known as the _Canes Venatici_ , latin for Hunting Dogs, where the galaxy NGC 5194 or Messier 51A is located."

Chan turned to T'Lera, who was studying her readings on the console as the computer identified the constellation. She looked up from her console, "Admiral, we _are_ in the galaxy NGC 5194."

Chan stared at the viewscreen, "NGC 5194..." He mused, "That's the Whirlpool Galaxy, discovered by Charles Messier in October 13th 1773! We're about 15 and 35 million light years away from the Milky Way."

T'Lera nodded, "It would appear so."  
"Ben, the Doctor is being beamed onto the bridge, we are receiving him now," Lyhla T'hyph, the ship's Operations officer said, working on her controls.

Lights shimmered in front of Chan, Hadley and Xerx, heralding the holographic Doctor of the _U.S.S. Voyager_. He looked around, making sure he's in the right place, then he looked at his body to determine anything was lost. Feeling satisfied, he smiled and nodded at Chan, and turned around to see the constellations and nebula in the viewscreen. His eyes widened.

"Admiral!" The artificial doctor said, "those stars are part of the _Canes Venatici_ constellation!"

Chan nodded, "Doctor, we are located in the Whirlpool Galaxy, about 15 and 35 million light years from the Milky Way."

The Doctor opened his mouth, but whatever he said was not audible to Chan, "The furthest we ever went was the _U.S.S. Odyssey's_ journey through the Andromeda Galaxy!" He turned around and was about to say something, but stopped, he began to frown, "It's a pity we can't stay here long, we're supposed to close the gateway before anymore aliens try to go through."

Chan nodded slowly, apparently looking rather disappointed, "I was hoping to find that creature we encountered on _Enterprise_ , but I guess time is of the essence. We must shut the gateway down."

"Admiral, I am picking up loss in integrity in the anomaly's structure," Kudak'Atar announced. McCoy's eyes widened as he wondered what the Jem'Hadar was saying, "The gateway's _closing!"_ He said in realization.

Everyone's eyes turned to the viewscreen, which now revealed the portal growing smaller, Chan glanced at Constantine, "Ensign, bring us about and take us at full impulse for the gateway!" Constantine worked furiously, piloting the _Phoenix_ towards the gateway.

"Admiral," T'Lera called, Chan turned around and looked at her, "we won't make it, the tunnel through the portal has collapsed considerably, we'd be crushed by the tunnel walls approximately 2 minutes the moment we enter the gateway."

Chan dipped his head, frowning as he thought of a solution, suddenly, he looked towards the Doctor, "Doctor, the _U.S.S. Phoenix_ needs you to pass the information on to Tuvok and Quinn. Tell them we're alive and well and we'll find our way back home."

The Doctor hesitated, he recalled the _Voyager's_ experience in the Delta Quadrant and concluded he didn't like the _Phoenix's_ chances here in the Whirlpool Galaxy, but he nodded reluctantly, "Very well Admiral, I'll pass the message."

Chan looked towards the Andorian-Aenar female, "Lyhla, transport the Doctor back to _Voyager_."

Lyhla nodded, looking down at her console. The Doctor disappeared in swirling lights as he was returned back to his source. "Done," she said, her antennae twitched in frustration as she watched the portal close in front of the _Phoenix_ , " _and_ we're doomed," she muttered.

* * *

The Doctor watched as the _Phoenix's_ bridge was replaced with the familiar Intrepid-Class bridge. He looked around, glancing at the surprised looks from the multiple officers at their respective stations. Tuvok raised an eyebrow.

"Doctor? The portal closed just as you were returning back to _Voyager_. Please recount what exactly happened," Tuvok calmly said as he stood up together with VanZyl. The Doctor recounted what he saw on the other side and repeated the message Chan said. Tuvok nodded, "We'll... Have to report this to Starfleet Command," he said quietly, "Lt. Cmdr. VanZyl, you have the con, I'll shall be in my ready room," he add as he left the bridge.

The Doctor glanced at VanZyl, his face showed signs that he was worried.  
"15 and 35 million light years?" VanZyl asked, "what are their chances of returning home like _Voyager_ and _Odyssey_?"

The Doctor hesitated, "Not great Lieutenant Commander, not great at all."


	6. Chapter 4

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Four  
Author's Notes: **Another chapter for "Lost," S1E1 of** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **. Sorry for the delay. Anyway, I would very much appreciate for reviews so I am aware of anything you guys picked up that I didn't, so please do so, thank you. Hope it's living up to my original story. Cheers.**

* * *

 **Admiral's log, supplemental. The** _ **U.S.S. Phoenix**_ **is trapped in the galaxy NGC 5194, otherwise known as the Whirlpool Galaxy. There was no trace of a gateway anywhere within the vicinity, so we have concluded that we can't return home that way. I am hoping to discover this** _ **Nahc Neb**_ **and how it knows me. In the meantime, we are investigating a Class-M planet in the solar system we first entered from the gateway.**

"Admiral, I am not picking up any alien technology within the planet's vicinity," T'Lera said as she studied her readings.

Chan nodded, "Kudak'Atar? Do you pick up any subspace communications?" Kudak'Atar shook his head after referring to his console, "Negative, Admiral, not in a frequency I know. I am, however, picking up several interferences from several channels." Chan nodded, "Check on that. Rose? Opinion?"  
Hadley stared out of the viewscreen from her first officer's station, "I think it is safe to say that we could beam a landing party and have a look, but we'll have to be cautious."  
Chan nodded, "Kolez, prepare a security team for the landing party. I'll meet you down at transporter room 2."  
Kolez nodded and left the bridge. Chan glanced at Hadley, "Rose, you have the con." Hadley seemed to open her mouth to interject, but thought twice and closed her mouth.

She nodded, "Be careful."  
Chan reached and squeezed her hand warmly, and getting up, left the room with McCoy.

Hadley watched them with a worried expression, Xerx noticed. Xerx too got up and followed the retreating officers entering the turbolift. Chan held the door from closing as Xerx got in.

"Admiral, I'd like to accompany the away team," Xerx stated as the turbolift began to move.

Chan frowned, but soften his countenance, "Very well. McCoy, T'Lera, Kolez and his security team will be accompanying us as well. Do you need to do anything before we embark?"

Xerx shook her head, "I'm fine, sir."  
Chan nodded and turned to face the door. The door opened and the trio entered the corridor for the transporter room.  
Turner was already there with a technician at the controls. Kolez and two security officers were strapping on their equipment by the transporter pads. One of the security officers is Ensign Jaqueline Parker, a human female of age 21. The other officer is a Tellarite male named Ensign Kog. He was unusually tall for his species and had a large beard around his snout. McCoy slung his tricorder and medical equipment over his shoulder, while Chan strapped a phaser pistol onto his side. Xerx declined when Kolez offered her a phaser, remembering her Betazoid ethics and her family's death caused by these horrifying weapons. T'Lera entered the room, already equipped with a phaser and tricorder.

"All set, Skipper. Just give the word," Turner called from his station by the technician. Chan nodded and gestured everyone to place themselves on the pad. Everyone, but McCoy stepped up. Chan frowned at McCoy. McCoy sighed and reluctantly followed suit.

McCoy made soft exploding sounds and made a gesture of exploding, "Atoms scattered and shot through space," he whispered angrily to Chan. Chan rolled his eyes and nodded to Turner.

"Energize."  
The transporter room began to disappear in a flurry of light, almost immediately replaced by hard, solid ground with trees and bushes surrounding them. Everyone initially looked around, all security officers drew out their phasers and cautiously checked for any signs of danger. The vegetation was quite similar to Earth's, though its color was quite interesting. The bark of the thin and tall trees are black in color, while their leaves contradict this with bright red. There was no sign of grass around them, the ground being hard rock. The wind blew heavily, making the trees whisper eerie sounds.

"Winds are blowing at 23 klicks per hour. No signs of sentient lifeforms within the vicinity of the tricorder's scanning range," T'Lera said as she lowered her tricorder.

"The colors are quite marvelous," Xerx whispered as she stared at the vegetation around them.

Chan nodded, apparently hearing Xerx's comment, "Very well balanced. I like how the colors contradict each other. The lines on the leaves are very bold. It's nice."

Xerx smiled, "I didn't know you liked art."  
Chan grinned, "I used to paint a lot during the Eugenics War when the soldiers stopped shooting. I'd sneak out to my hiding spot to paint my imagination. There wasn't many pleasant objects to look at during those times, but I got to paint interesting things in Starfleet Academy."

Xerx nodded slowly and glanced around and watched the landing party divide between the security team and McCoy and T'Lera. "You were in the Eugenics War?" She asked after a thought, wide eyed. Chan started and glanced at Xerx nervously, then suddenly turned to watch a flock of birds pass by overhead. Xerx eyed Chan curiously, "Benedict?"

Chan turned suddenly again, "Yes?"  
"Are you ok?"  
Chan nodded and smiled, "Yes I'm fine, what made you ask?"  
"You seem distracted when I asked whether you were in the Eugenics War?" Chan frowned, "I'd rather not talk about it, Chandra."  
Xerx nodded slowly, "But the Eugenics War was during the late 20th century and throughout the 21st century. I didn't know you lived that long."  
Chan was about to say something when a shout from McCoy interrupted their conversation and drew the party again to McCoy and T'Lera's location. Chan and Xerx ran up to them, joined later by Kolez and his team. McCoy and T'Lera were looking at T'Lera's tricorder. Something must have caught the two's interest.

"Doc? T'Lera? What is it?" Chan asked hurriedly.  
McCoy pointed out into the distance, but whatever it was, it was obscured by the trees closely crowding each other. "Ben, the tricorder just picked up alien technology out there within 4 kilometers. Looks like you have to be really near it with handheld devices to pick 'em up."

Chan nodded, "That would explain the _Phoenix's_ inability to detect them."  
"Must be shielded," Kolez remarked.  
"Admiral, may I suggest we exercise caution when approaching any alien lifeforms?"

T'Lera put in. Chan nodded and gestured to the others, "Shall we?"

* * *

"Captain, I am picking up several ships off the port bow," Kudak'Atar announced suddenly. Hadley started and glanced at the Jem'Hadar behind her at the tactical station. She turned towards the viewscreen, "On-screen," she said.

The screen's image of the picturesque red-green-blue planet in the empty void of space changed suddenly to show several starships decloaking. Unlike the familiar effects of the Klingon and Romulan's cloaking device by appearing all of a sudden in a ghostly effect, they seem to decloak from front to back, a blue line of energy passes through to reveal the black hull of the alien ships. The ships were sleek and big, what seemed like warp nacelles tucked in the vessels' sides. There were hangars located on the top of the secondary hull, with a runway running along the hull from the hangar's doors. There was a large hole at the back of the primary hull, with windows that revealed decks rotating round. The bridge could be seen projecting in the middle of the primary hull.

"They're hailing us, Captain," Kudak'Atar said, glancing from the tactical console, to Hadley and then to the screen. Hadley nodded, noting the many turrets throughout each ship.

"Answer them," she said, closing her eyes to calm herself down, "Lyhla, keep an eye on the away team's location and prepare to beam them back on my signal."

The Andorian-Aenar female nodded and stared intently at her console. The viewscreen in front of the crew replaced the image of the sleek ships to a very human looking man. His countenance was grim, but there was a grandfatherly look in his eyes. His hair was snow white and few wrinkles could be seen on his face, but Hadley judged he looks like he is 60 if one was to exclude the hair and wrinkles.

"Unknown vessel, Identify yourself and your purpose in this system," he said in a gruff and hoarse manner. Hadley was surprised to hear English coming from the man, since in a galaxy never explored by the Federation, she didn't expect the universal translator to work.

"We are the Federation starship _U.S.S. Phoenix_ , we come from the planet Earth in the Milky Way galaxy," she said calmly, "I am Captain Rose Hadley, second-in-command." The man cocked his head, "But you're rank is Captain, why then, are you second-in-command?"  
"I passed my command to Admiral Benedict Chan. It's a long story," she noticed the man seemed distracted, his eyes darting from somewhere off-screen to Hadley.  
"So where is your commanding officer?" He asked.  
Hadley glanced at Lyhla nervously and nodded, Lyhla's hands was a flurry as she began working on her console.  
Hadley stared at the supposed alien, "He is unavailable at this time, but I don't suppose you'd like to leave a message first?"  
The alien cocked his head again, "Very well, Federation starship _U.S.S. Phoenix_ of planet Earth. We are the Kor'Goth of the Kor'Goth Empire, and are the authorities of this sector. I am General Raan. We picked up an unknown anomaly here and have arrived to investigate," at this point, the alien leaned closer to the screen, "if you have any violent intentions, I shall know of it and will have your heads." He leaned back, looking satisfied.

Hadley hesitated, then nodded, "Well General, since you seem like a _friendly_ person, I will confide with you our mission."

General Raan cocked his head again, raising one thin eyebrow. Hadley stood up from her seat and walked towards the screen, "General, the anomaly you picked up was a gateway to our galaxy 15 to 35 million light years away from your galaxy. An alien vessel from your side approached us and destroyed one of our starships. We intended to close the gateway to prevent anymore attacks... But apparently... The gateway closed with us on this side." Raan nodded, glanced off-screen and back to Hadley, "You are communicating with your landing party down on our colony world Draa'Kaar." Hadley started and glanced at Lyhla, whose antennae was twitching furiously. "But do not worry, you do not seem to be part of the Nylock Empire and we'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I suggest meeting you on the surface so we can communicate more... personally."

Hadley nodded hesitantly, "Thank you General, I look forward to our meeting."  
The general nodded and the screen went blank. She slowly wheeled around to face the rest of the bridge crew, "This is going to be interesting," she whispered.


	7. Chapter 5

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Five  
Author's Notes: **Another chapter for S1E1 of** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **! Guys, please review and express your thoughts of this book. That'd be lovely. Cheers!**

* * *

"Ben, what's going on?" McCoy asked as Chan conversed with Hadley through the comm badge on his uniform. The landing party was traveling through the forest to identify T'Lera's readings when Lyhla contacted them from the _Phoenix_.

"Thanks Rose. Keep in touch, we'll rendezvous with you and General Raan," Chan tapped his comm badge, which chirped to let Chan know that it is off. He glanced up to look at the sky. The clouds were heavy and completely covered the sky. "The _Phoenix_ was detected by a species called the Kor'Goth on sensors. Their leader, 'General Raan,' wants to speak with us personally and will rendezvous with us and Rose at these coordinates," Chan said as he pointed towards the place the group was already heading.

McCoy harrumphed and began walking alongside Chan as the security team and T'Lera walked ahead of them. Kolez and Xerx walked behind. McCoy glanced left and right, then eyed Chan. "You don't suppose it's a trap?" He whispered.

Chan hesitated as he thought about it, "Perhaps. Rose thinks they aren't the same as the aliens that attacked us. Their ships' layout contradicts the one that came out of the gateway."

McCoy frowned, "But it still could have been them. They could have different starship classes like us, with different designs and all."

"The architecture of the Kor'Goth vessels may vary, but the technology and energy patterns both ships possess contradict each other as if they were opposites," T'Lera interrupted as she slowed down to walk alongside Chan and McCoy. "It would be illogical for a species to create a variety of ships and make it difficult for others and themselves to identify which are theirs."

McCoy rolled his eyes as T'Lera continued onwards without the two men, "My grandfather warned me about Vulcans and their philosophy. Kind of wish I listened to him instead of putting up with them," he whispered sarcastically. Chan grinned and continued their hike in silence.

It was getting dark when the landing party approached a large fortress, to which T'Lera suspected to be a military garrison. The garrison's outer defense walls were 50 feet tall and approximately 150 long, making it about 600 feet in perimeter. A very large cannon stand on towers on each corner of the fortress, with little turrets at the top of the walls every 2 meters or so. Chan felt as if he was walking into a high tech medieval castle as they were admitted by the sentry guards. A tall man stood beside Hadley and a science officer, Lieutenant Junior in rank, as Chan's group approached them. Hadley introduced him as General Raan.

"Greetings Admiral. Your 'second-in-command,' Captain Hadley informed me of your encounter of the Gateway," the Kor'Goth General began, "the vessel that entered your galaxy was a scout ship of the Nylock Empire."

McCoy started in surprise, "You're telling me that these 'Nylocks' sent us a tiny little ship that would be a behemoth to us and blew up one of our advanced tactical ships? What? They have bigger ones too?"

Raan nodded, "Indeed. Naturally, we'd welcome you warmly as you are the first to contact us from a different galaxy, but your timing is rather uncanny. The Nylocks invaded our half of this galaxy a decade ago and have declared war against our empire to settle who would rule both sides. They have this so called 'code of honor' and believe we are a walking disease."

Chan nodded, "Sounds quite familiar from some species we have encountered at our end, but tell me General, how is it we could both clearly understand each other? I would be surprise if our universal translators are able to adapt our two languages quite fast since your galaxy is completely unknown to our Federation."

"It's possible our languages have a similar basis that helped form English from several ancient languages on Earth," T'Lera suggested, "The Kor'Goth could have the same idea that the translators picked up and adapted to it."

McCoy shrugged indifferently, "All Greek to me."  
A young looking Kor'Goth soldier approached the group quietly and exchanged a few words with Raan and left stealthily in the same manner he approached them. Raan's countenance had a disturbed look as he frowned at the sky. "It seems," the General stated, "that there is a Nylock expedition near our home world. This is unexpected, since their code of honor defines them as people to attack at the front lines and ceremoniously push us to submission. Our fleet and army are spread thin, since most are at the front lines. The only ships at our disposal are mine, which is insufficient against this attack squad the reports are saying. Admiral, I know it is rather too much to ask of you, especially someone who has no part in this war, or the business of this galaxy, but I would be most grateful if you could help us defend our home world."

Chan looked up at the sky as stratus clouds covered all that is blue, giving the group a heavy feeling. Gesturing to Hadley, he drew her aside with McCoy, Xerx and T'Lera to converse privately. "I think," he said before casting a glance in Raan's direction, "that it would be best to aid these people."

McCoy gave him a shocked look, "You can't be serious, Ben? We have enough problems as it is. We don't need to pile more onto our laps."

"But it would give us an opportunity to form an alliance with them. They could, in return, help us find our way home," Xerx put in meekly.

T'Lera nodded, "That does sound plausible."  
McCoy looked incredulous, "But if we were to die in the attempt? Would that be worth the risk? Remember, you got over 600 lives aboard the _Phoenix_ , crew and civilians included." Chan nodded, "I understand the risk I'll be taking Doc, and I'll keep that in mind, but I think if we were not to aid them, we'd sooner enough deplete our dilithium to continue the journey through warp." Chan seemed to have made up his mind as he turned around to confront Raan.

"General Raan, when shall we depart?" Chan announced. General Raan nodded and smiled grimly, aware that he is dragging innocent people into his people's war. Turning around, he began barking orders to several of his men awaiting his orders. McCoy, Xerx and T'Lera left to rejoin Kolez and his security team, while Chan drew Hadley away out of ear-shot.

"Rose, This might not end well, but I have a contingency plan in case the _Phoenix_ is not to survive the skirmish," Chan whispered.

Hadley stared at Chan carefully, tears were welling up in her eyes, "Ben, what have we gotten ourselves into? I shouldn't have pushed the responsibility of the _Phoenix's_ crew to you, then you wouldn't be in this position, I should have–"

"Hey hey," Chan whispered, interrupting Hadley, "Don't cry over spilt milk. It's not your fault. We'll get out of this alive and I'll be damned if I don't carry every brave officer of my crew back home. Here's my plan."

* * *

"Ensign, take us alongside the Kor'Goth ships at half impulse," Chan said as he sat at the command chair in the _Phoenix's_ bridge. Constantine glanced at Chan uncertainly, then turn to concentrate on his console, slowly moving the Federation starship closer to the large, dark battleships of the Kor'Goth. Chan's choice in aiding the Kor'Goth defend their home world from the Nylocks were received with mixed responses from the crew of the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. Those that have served their time during the Iconian War felt uncertain in going into another war which has nothing to do with them. The young and ambitious officers were quite excited with the prospect of gaining merit and proving their worth to their superior officers. Though some were negative, all listened to the command of Admiral Benedict Chan, faithful that he would bring them home alive.

"Admiral, General Raan is hailing us," Kudak'Atar announced at the tactical station behind the command chair. Chan nodded, watching the viewscreen of the Kor'Goth ships replaced by the now familiar image of Raan.

"Admiral, we are ready. I'll see you at the rendezvous point," the old looking Kor'Goth general said tersely.

"Will do, General," Chan returned as the screen went back to the image of space. The ships on the viewscreen disappeared one by one, leaving behind streaks of white light. Chan signaled to Constantine, "Ensign, initiate warp drive. Warp factor 9." The _Phoenix_ too disappeared. A dark cloud then forms in the space the Federation starship once took, its shapeless form swirled with small sparks of white light trying to escape the dark mass. A chilling chuckle and a thought then emits from the mass, but due to the natural physics of space, not a sound could be heard from anyone if they were to be in its presence.

 _Oh Ben... Sticking out your neck between the lion's jaws as usual... When are you ever going to learn?_


	8. Chapter 6

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Six  
Author's Notes: **Another chapter for S1E1 for** _ **ST:Phoenix**_ **! This one is rather long, but I hope you all will enjoy it. Only a few more chapters and I'll start work on S1E2! Just remember I am studying high school so I won't be able write fast and I'm also thinking of starting other subjects as well. I probably might not add chapters fast, because I don't think I'm getting a lot of readers, so all my work would be for nought. So please read and review and I'll write even more vigorously! Cheers.**

* * *

"Approaching Kor'Gotha in 21 minutes, sir."  
Constantine's voice brought Chan back into reality to find the quiet, but busy bridge of the _Phoenix_. He looked around, nodding as he accounted each officer focusing on his or her duties. His eyes fell to Hadley, and noticed her fingers were fidgeting. Reaching out, he firmly, but warmly squeezed her hand. When he felt her relax, he smiled at her, nodded, and let go of her hand, so she could work on the small console for the Executive Officer. Turning to his left, he noticed Xerx eyeing him as she abruptly turned away as if she had been staring at the viewscreen for some time. All this happened in a minute or so. Turning his attention back to the viewscreen, he said, "Thank you Ensign. Power up all maneuvering thrusters and be ready for evasive action when needed." Chan turned his head slightly so he could see the officers behind him in the corner of his eye and tapped his comm badge, which chirped. "Chief, I need as much power to shields as we can. If the Nylock scout ship could pound the _Hawking_ to a pulp, we don't have much chance with their warships. We're gonna have to play on the defensive."

"Aye, Skipper. I'm distributing as much power to the shields and thrusters as I can." "Thank you, Bob," he tapped his comm badge again to turn it off, "tactical, prepare to fire phasers on my command." Kudak'Atar nodded and silently continued his work.  
Chan stared out at the viewscreen, the stars flashing pass peacefully and silently. He closed his eyes and silently whispered a prayer, not certain what will happen in the next 15 minutes. Opening his eyes suddenly, he tapped on the console on the arm of his chair. A whistle echoed throughout the ship, Chan lowered his head to the pad and hesitated as he thought of what he wanted to say. All eyes on the bridge were on him.

"Attention, this is the Admiral speaking. I know many of you doubt my choice to fight with the Kor'Goth and the fact is, you have every right to doubt my command. I have fought in the Iconian War and many other battles, so I know what it feels like to be afraid and face death in the eye. So to be frank, I am asking you, not as your commanding officer, but as your fellow officer and friend, to fight, if not for the Kor'Goth, but for me." Chan paused, taking a glance around the bridge, several officers had determination in their eyes. Constantine looked at him uncertainly, alongside several junior officers. "I know," he started, "that you all will serve the Federation with determination and faith. A Captain, even an Admiral, can't ask for no finer crew than the _Phoenix's._ I'll be damned if I can't bring every brave officer home and I promise you, I will, but I am proud and honored to serve with you all for the last time."

All hands, including Constantine and the junior officers immediately swiveled their seats to work at their station. "We are ready to drop out of warp, sir. Maneuvering thrusters are powered and ready for use," Constantine said.

"Phasers have been charged and torpedo bays have been armed," Kudak'Atar suddenly announced.

"All security teams have reported at their designated stations and are ready to repel all boarding parties," another voice announced behind Chan.

"Engineering has reported that shields and thrusters are at optimal level." Chan nodded and smiled, reaching out a hand to squeeze Hadley's hand. "All hands are ready for duty, Admiral," Hadley said, almost to a whisper.

Chan nodded, still smiling, he turned to the viewscreen and stared at the flying stars dash pass. He nodded again, and made a hand signal, "Tactical, shields up. Ensign, take us out of warp."

The field of dashing stars disappeared suddenly, revealing flashes of light throughout every corner of the viewer. Debris flew here and there, with several blurs of starfighters flying everywhere among them. The quiet bridge became total chaos. Officers were yelling reports as stray blaster fire from both Nylock and Kor'Goth ships slashed into the _Phoenix's_ hull. A Nylock warship, ridiculously huge, suddenly came out of warp a mile or so in front of them. The _Phoenix_ was lucky enough to suddenly veer right to avoid an extending appendage from the behemoth. Chan watched it collide into a Kor'Goth battlecruiser, cutting right through the unlucky vessel, splitting it into half. Chan, for a brief moment, mused he could see the battlecruiser's occupants fly out of the breached area.

"Tactical, fire photon torpedoes at the warship! Helm, give us some distance from the target!" Chan barked. streaks of red light flashed pass as the torpedoes were shot from it's source and into the dark mass of metal. Bright explosions ignited where the torpedoes hit, apparently causing little damage to the monster. _Aw hell_ , Chan thought furiously as he ordered Kudak'Atar to fire phasers, _This is worse than the Iconian War and the Time War put together!_

* * *

McCoy watched from Sickbay as the explosions from the _Phoenix's_ torpedoes decorated the hull of the Nylock warship, metal exploding and flying into different directions, but as he stared at the behemoth altogether, it didn't look like it did any damage at all.

"My God, man!" McCoy berated at the warship vehemently, "We're microorganisms compared to that monster! Their bigger than a Borg cube and an Iconian dreadnought combined!"

"Doctor McCoy!" The ship's nurse, Heather McDaffy, yelled, "We need help here!" McCoy stared at the warship's cannon fire at a small Kor'Goth corvette, dividing the ship into five pieces. He turned away to help the medical staff deal with the continuous rush of injured people taken into Sickbay from the main doors. "Get me a hypospray with 40cc of Quadrazine!" He yelled at a nearby Medic.

* * *

"Admiral!" Lyhla yelled as an explosion blew a Lieutenant officer near her over one of the railings and across the room. Chan turned and frowned at Lyhla, "General Raan is hailing us!" She yelled.

 _Now?_ Chan thought, _As in right now? You gotta be kidding me!  
_ Another explosion from a vacant console station drew his attention followed by the rocking of the entire ship. "Shields at 62% and dropping!" Kudak'Atar yelled indifferently, as if he didn't care if they all died at that very moment, but Chan knew what was going on in the proud Jem'Hadar's mind.

"Patch him through, Lyhla!" Chan yelled as a fire ignited near Xerx.  
Chan was feeling motion sick as the ship was rocking back and forth. The _Phoenix_ was but a tiny ship to even a Kor'Goth corvette, and it made it even worse as the the lone third party vessel was hammered on both sides in the middle of the battlefield.

The image of the furious battle was replaced by Raan, who was also in a bridge of chaos. Officers behind him were running in a frenzy, barking orders at each other, Raan ignored all of it. "Admiral, we have breached a hole into the Nylock Flagship's defenses. The Nylock's sensors are automatic and their turrets will fire on anything they recognize as Kor'Goth. My engineering officer believes he can fire an electromagnetic pulse at the breach to mask any alien ships from detection."

Chan stared at him befuddled, "But if that is so, why can't you send one of your ships?" "Our EMP can only mask the sensor to a certain point, meaning they'll still pick up our warp signature. Your vessel is alien to them, please help! My daughter is a captive on board that vessel!"  
Chan glanced at T'Lera, who raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Your daughter?" Chan hesitantly asked.  
Raan nodded, looking rather embarrassed, "We were boarded and they captured several of my officers, including my daughter. That's why we only made a hole instead of annihilating them."

Chan nodded and clenched onto his seat as another explosion rocked the _Phoenix_ again, "Very well General, I'll personally see to it that we save your officers."

Raan looked immensely relieved as the channel closed. Chan immediately got up and march towards the turbolift, "Rose, you have the conn. Maintain our defensive position." Hadley looked at him shocked, and rushed to catch up with him to the turbolift, "T'Lera, you take the conn!" She yelled back as she disappeared behind the turbolift doors. Another explosion rocked the ship and muffled T'Lera's response.

"Shields at 55% and dropping!" Kudak'Atar announced.  
"Divert power from auxiliary batteries to shields," T'Lera calmly replied.

* * *

"What are you doing, Ben?" Hadley practically yelled as the doors closed behind them, "Might I remind you that Starfleet Regulations clearly dictates that–"

"Oh never mind that!" Chan interrupted, "remember, I am only commanding officer temporary. If this is a suicide mission, I need you to take command and bring everyone home. I'm not gonna have you risk your life for me!"

"But then I will lose you, the one man I love!" Hadley blurted.  
Chan stopped short and stared intently at her, his features softening. "Rose," he whispered, wrapping his arm around her, her shoulders shivered as she sobbed into his chest. The ship shuddered as she struggled against the battle outside. "Rose, I need you to be brave. I promise you, I'll come back. I'll do whatever I can... Just... Do it for me. I promise I will keep myself alive and come back. I'm taking Kolez, Bob and Doc to protect me, okay?"

Hadley sniffed and nodded, "Fine," she whispered as she pressed her lips against his. Chan barely got enough time to respond to the kiss when the turbolift doors opened to reveal McCoy at the entrance, equipped with his medical equipment and a phaser pistol.

He rolled his eyes as he realized what they were doing, "Oh for God's sake, get a room."

* * *

"You sure about this, Skipper?" Turner asked nervously as Chan took the controls of the _Delta Flyer_ , smoothly guiding the agile craft, designed by Tom Paris, out of the hangar. "I mean, you know how big that hole is right?"

Chan shrugged indifferently, "We'll make it, have a little faith."  
"Faith?! I'll be damned if I put any faith in homicidal aliens!" McCoy exploded.  
"Connor, please help me out," Chan said exasperatedly.  
McCoy sat back in his seat, crossing his arms, "Have a little faith. Hmph."  
The _Delta Flyer_ weaved through the many debris that floated throughout the battle zone. A large chunk of a Kor'Goth ship's hull suddenly appeared in front, Chan continued flying towards it, as he noticed a large enough hole to fly right through without having to lose more time navigating around the debris.

"Whoa whoa! We're not gonna make it!" McCoy yelled as he clenched onto his chair's arms. The _Delta Flyer_ flew right passed, a slight shudder told them how close they were to colliding into the debris.

Chan glanced at McCoy and grinned, "See Doc? A little faith."  
McCoy shot Chan a glare and silently watched the battle raging just outside of the shuttle's range. The dark shadow came into view, revealing the flagship of the Nylocks. The hole was considerably large, but Turner pointed out that the hole grew smaller as they go further in. A large energy beam shot right into the side of the flagship, the lights suddenly flickering on and off as the EMP took its effect. Chan took that moment to increase speed and fly right through the hole. Several fighters undocked suddenly from nowhere, the four Starfleet officers were apprehensive, but relieved after the fighters left to attack a group Kor'Goth fighters that were within range. The shuttle shuddered even more as she was tightly maneuvered through the far end of the hole.

"We're not gonna make it... We're not gonna make it," McCoy muttered under his breath as the _Delta Flyer's_ hull began to scream as she was scraping through the hole's walls.

"According to the ship's layout, there's a landing pad just to our right _if_ we get through and into the main hangar," Turner announced as he read his console.

The _Delta Flyer's_ headlights were beacons in the dark, light-flickering corridor. The opening was just ahead of them, as the shade was slightly brighter than the corridor. Suddenly, the shuttle shook vigorously. All four exchanged glances in confusion. Kolez got off his seat to check the monitor behind them.

"Uh... We got company," Kolez announced, another shudder as the shuttle scraped against the walls, followed by an explosion hit from whoever is following them.

"Sensors are picking up Nylock energy signatures from the fighters behind us," Turner said as he examined his readings, "I think there are four of 'em behind us."

Chan nodded, "Hold on, I'm gonna give us more speed."  
McCoy was looking from Turner to Chan, then his eyes grew wider, "Hold on! _You think?_ What do you mean _you think_?"  
Turner shrugged, "The computer can't recognize these signatures yet."  
McCoy groaned, "Oh great... Just great."  
The shuttle suddenly tilted, rotating to the right. McCoy peaked through Chan's seat and realized the hole was much smaller at the end. Opening his mouth, he was about to yell at Chan, but gave up and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for his approaching doom.

 _Whomp!_ The shuttle flew right through the hole, blowing out several tiny shards of metal from the warship's hull. Fire suddenly breathed out from the hole, a sign that the starfighters didn't make it through.

"There! The landing pad!" Turner shouted as he pointed to the pad on their right. Chan nodded and steered the shuttle towards the pad. The void where the landing pads are is ridiculously spacious, with docking clamps symmetrically placed at the ceiling about a 100 miles above the pad. On each clamp, one starfighter was attached to it, making it about 800 starfighters altogether occupying the clamps. The _Delta Flyer_ landed roughly on the pad.

"Rough landing... I think we knocked out one of our thrusters when we flew through the hole," Turner remarked after the four of them were shaken from the landing. Chan nodded, quickly unstrapped himself and left for the rear part of the shuttle to arm himself. Kolez followed suit, leaving McCoy and Turner in their seats.

"Tell me about rough landing... I might even consider transporters better than flying," McCoy muttered with his eyes still tightly shut.

Chan looked around him cautiously as he stepped off the _Delta Flyer_. Raising his phaser pistol slowly and wheeling around on his heels to get a 180o view. Kolez followed suit with his rifle, finding his way around the shuttle to see if anyone was behind. McCoy and Turner stepped out with there equipment, both had their phasers in hand.

"All clear," Kolez said from behind. Chan signaled them to follow him as he made his way across the large pad to the main doors, or so they hope it would be.

"Through the doors and to the right at end of the corridor," Turner said as he studied his tricorder. They made their way through the long corridor, lights still flickering from the EMP. Turning right, they bumped into several armored soldiers lead by a purple skin colored humanoid. The Nylocks apparently, didn't have any visible hearing organs, well, that looked like an ear. Their eyebrows were thin, and their hair color was of a dark red. There are no other additional appendages to make them look exotic, so other than the missing ears and different colored skin and orange eyes with no pupils, they looked human.

"Halt!" The leader yelled as the four immediately wheeled around and made a dash for cover. The Nylocks began firing their rifles, bullets whizzing past, one nearly cutting through McCoy's ear. _Ironic_ , McCoy thought as he jumped behind an extending wall.

Chan, appeared from his hiding spot and fired, a flash of light going through one of the soldiers brain, burning it quickly so that there was no hint of blood flying out of the head. Suddenly, another group of Nylock soldiers appeared behind them. "Halt! Drop your weapons and raise your hands where we can see them!" The leader yelled when he noticed his backup surrounding them. His voice was hoarse that had a hint of a second voice ringing through his speech.

Seeing no other way around, Chan lowered his weapon and dropped it on the floor. The others saw this and followed his example. "Take them," the leader said, "drop them off with the rest of the prisoners." He eyed each one of them intently, then suddenly demanded, "Which one of you is in charge?"

McCoy was about to retort when Chan stepped forward, "I am. Promise me you won't hurt my men."

The unarmored Nylock studied him carefully, "No promises," he said bluntly. "Take their leader and bring him to the bridge," he ordered to the soldiers holding Chan, "the Warlord will want to have a word with the alien."

 _Shit. This isn't turning out well is it?_ He thought as he was separated from the rest and taken to what appears to be a turbolift.


	9. Chapter 7

Series: Star Trek: Phoenix  
Author: Magnum Infinitum  
Book: #1 "Lost"  
Chapter: Seven  
Author's Notes: **Another episode of S1E1. Very close to the end! Please review your thoughts, I'd like to hear them. The last chapters will come soon, promise! Don't forget to check out my other books (not much though) when you have the time. By the way, since I updated this chapter a few days from Christmas, I just want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas!**

* * *

Chan was shoved hard as the turbolift's strange doors, sort of like flat climbing vine plates, opened in four directions. He looked around apprehensively, looking for a way to escape if the time comes. In the long, dark corridor of a bridge, a lone humanoid stood at the other end. The dark figure in the shadows slowly turned around as if to give a dramatic effect. A rifle's barrel from behind came jabbing Chan between his shoulder blades, forcing him to move further into the chamber. Approaching the humanoid, the figure stepped out of the shadows to reveal a scarred face of Chan himself. Chan looked at him wide-eyed, but concentrated in keeping his emotions in check, imitating a perfect Vulcan.

The Nylock armored version of Chan approached him, smiling warmly, surprisingly. His arms opened wide, attempting to hug Chan, but Chan stood back, staring at the duplicate nervously, yet curiously. The duplicate shook his head in disappointment and stepped back.

"Admiral Benedict Chan, welcome aboard the _Eye of the Storm_. I'm quite certain you are very curious how a duplicate of you happened to be here," he chuckled, rubbing his thin, bearded chin. Chan continued to study the duplicate, unsure whether to believe anything he saw. "Oh yes, Admiral... Don't believe in anything you're seeing," the duplicate said suddenly, cocking his head to peer into Chan's eyes, as if knowing what Chan was thinking.

"Who are you?" Chan asked simply, keeping his facial expression cold and calm. The duplicate smiled, he stood back even further, opening his arms wide to give Ben a good look at him.

"Who am I? The question should be... Who do you think I am?"  
Chan took a step forward, the Nylock soldiers behind brought their rifles up suddenly. The duplicate gestured a hand to stop them, looking confident. Chan hesitated, then took another step. "You're me from a different universe. You're _Nahc Neb,_ " Chan announced, keeping an eye at the soldiers while focusing his attention at the duplicate.

The duplicate laughed, "Oh Ben... That is a very good deduction. Now... Let's play a game of tag. You're going to run and rescue your men and escape this ship, while I," he pointed at himself for effect, "will chase after and kill you... How's that?"

Chan looked at him surprised, suddenly, Nahc Neb raised his hand, an old Earth western revolver appearing in his hand. _Bang! Bang!_ The soldiers around Chan fell onto the ground, their white blood flowing out, making puddles across the floor. Chan looked around in confusion, quickly crouching in defense, balancing lightly on the balls of his feet. Nahc Neb lowered his arm and frowned at Chan.

"What are you waiting for?" He gestured for him to run along, "Run!"  
Chan quickly turned and ran for the turbolift, glancing behind him, he watched Nahc Neb bring the revolver to his head, his grin fixed in his face as the revolver blew a messy hole through it. The face of the falling figure changed into that of a Nylock general.

" _Run Ben... Run for your life! Haha!"_

Chan flew into the turbolift, the doors quickly closed behind him. Looking around him, he found the control pad by the wall and quickly pressed random numbers, deciding to gain distance from his nemesis. He gulped in multiple breaths, looking around frantically. _Where the hell am I going?_ He thought as he watched the doors opened to reveal McCoy, Kolez and Turner, surrounded by a group of Nylock soldiers.

"What the hell Ben?" McCoy reacted. The soldiers immediately apprehended Chan, pushing him towards the group. "What happened to you? You look like you've seen a ghost!" The soldiers nudged McCoy to remain silent as they began guiding the group into the turbolift. Suddenly, the lights flickered off. The soldiers began murmuring curses at the Kor'Goth for their EMP, when suddenly, a flash of white as all the heads of the Nylock soldiers burst within their helmets. The dull thud of the bodies falling to ground made Chan sick, wanting to hyperventilate. The lights suddenly flickered back on, yells and screams could be heard echoing throughout the corridors.

"Admiral! What's happening?" Kolez whispered as he, from habit, crouched into a defense position. "Is it the Kor'Goth?"

Chan looked around him as the lights began flickering erratically, "No... Not the Kor'Goth..." Suddenly, the far end of one side of the corridor went dark, the lights flickered a quick burst before the bulbs blew. The four Starfleet officers watched the dark hole nervously. A black mass of thick clouds came out of the dark hole, small sparks of light tried to escape the cloud. Chan reached out to his companions, pushing them the opposite direction from the anomaly. "Run! Run!"

All of them began a mad dash across the corridor, not even thinking of turn into another one but to keep running forward. Crew members of the Nylock flagship appeared in front out of nowhere, but the four of them just pushed past them, nothing but contemplating to escape in their minds. McCoy glanced behind him, the Nylock crew members were devoured by the anomaly, their bodies blowing into many fragments just before they went out of sight.

"Holy shit!" McCoy cursed as he turned around to quickly catch up with the others, "What is that?!"

The flickering lights revealed a large door in front of them, ending the long corridor. Kolez ran faster to open the doors, frantically calling the others to hurry. McCoy barely made it as Kolez shut the doors, narrowly missing his foot. Loud thuds could be heard as the entity attempted to destroy the door. McCoy went up to Chan and held him by the shoulders, shaking him as he said:

"Ben! What was that?"  
Chan didn't answer however, as he noticed several prison cells and realized where they are. Quickly running down the corridors, he began peering into each cell briefly, all of the cells were empty until he reach one that had three Kor'Goth officers occupying the tight space. The only female of the trio approached the doors, "You're Admiral Chan?" She asked hesitantly.

Chan nodded, "Chief! get this door opened!"  
With sparks of light and a loud crash, the doors were finally opened. Chan quickly pushed Turner to a computer terminal near one of the empty prison cells, "Find us a route to the _Delta Flyer!_ Quickly!"

Turner's fingers began flying across the terminal, he glanced once toward the doors as loud bangs could be heard coming from it. The female Kor'Goth watched the Starfleet officers' nervous movement in confusion. "What is wrong, Admiral? What's happening?"

Chan stopped pacing to face the female Kor'Goth, "You're the General's daughter?"

The female nodded, "Yes. My name is Riinna. But Admiral–"  
"Skipper! I got the schematics! I have the quickest route to the landing pad!" Turner interrupted, leaving the terminal behind him to rejoin the group. A chuckle could be heard from the other side of the chamber, opposite the doors. All eyes turned to find the scarred, thin bearded image of the evil Chan. His eyes completely black, he began walking slowly towards the group.

"To the door!" Chan yelled, pushing Riinna to join the already running Starfleet officers. The other two Kor'Goth officers followed behind. One began to slow down, losing his breath as Turner opened the large doors. Nahc Neb reached a hand out as he passed him, his arm turned into a spike, and stabbed the Kor'Goth through the chest. The officer made a gurgling noise as he dropped with a thud to the ground. Nahc Neb ignored the dead Kor'Goth and continued following the group, focused on killing them all one by one.

"This way!" Turner suddenly announced as he glanced at his tricorder and turned right down another corridor. Another large door was seen to their right, which everyone recognized as the landing pad's. Turner and Kolez rushed to open the massive doors and ran with the others across the open pad and into the _Delta Flyer_.

"Start the shuttle! Let's get the hell out of here!" McCoy yelled frantically as he watched the dark figure come out of the opened doorway. The _Delta Flyer_ lifted roughly, one of its thrusters damaged, unable to balance the shuttle. Nahc Neb stopped short and watched the group of escapists struggle with the vessel. He cocked his head and smiled, _Maybe... To make the game much more fun... I'll let you have a head start..._

The shuttle wheeled around 180o and made an irregular beeline for the hole the Kor'Goth made in the Nylock flagship's hull. Nahc Neb watched them disappear, grinning from ear to ear, "Let's change the board..." He muttered as he suddenly disappeared in a cloud of smoke, causing confusion to the Nylock soldiers that arrived at the landing pad to find him gone.

* * *

" _Red alert... Warp Core breach imminent... All hands abandon ship."_

"Damn it! What happened?" Hadley yelled as the ship's lights began flickering on and off, the floor beneath them shuddering. An explosion blew an officer from his station across the room, dead before he even hit the ground. Xerx bent to close the officer's eyes.

"It just happened! For a second, the Warp Core was fully functional, then suddenly, we got a breach in the Core!" Lyhla said angrily, kicking her station when the console suddenly went dead. "We're losing power rapidly!"

"68% of the escape pods have been ejected. Kor'Goth vessels are intercepting for pickup," Kudak'Atar announced calmly. _How does he do that?_ Hadley thought as she admired Kudak'Atar's cold countenance.

"Shuttle Bay is reporting that the _Delta Flyer_ has landed," T'Lera announced, her eyes darting all over her board. It looked like her Romulan side was beginning to show, revealing her fear of dying on board the _U.S.S. Phoenix_. "Admiral Chan is on his way to the bridge."

" _Red Alert... Warp Core breach imminent... All hands abandon ship."  
_ "Eject the Core! Seal off Engineering and eject the Core!" Hadley ordered as she got up from the command chair to check the navigator's console, which exploded into the face of the officer occupying the station.

"Wait!" Hadley turned around and sighed in relief when she saw Chan approach the center of the bridge. "I have an idea. Continue the evacuation! I want even the bridge crew to evacuate!"

Hadley's heart flew into her throat as she guessed what Chan's plan was. T'Lera, Constantine and Kudak'Atar helped carry the wounded into the turbolift, while Lyhla and Xerx followed behind. Hadley left the dead console and ran into Chan's arms, "Don't do it... Please don't..."

Chan smiled grimly, "Hey, look on the bright side. I came back, just as I promised. Rose, promise me you will let me go and get the crew home. Promise me, Rose."

Hadley nodded, sniffing, "I will." She quickly grabbed his face and kissed him warmly. Chan quickly responded, adding more pressure as the kiss became more intense.

Suddenly breaking the kiss, Chan ran for the ready room. Hadley stared after him in confusion, her eyes streaming with tears. Chan came out again with his cat Daisy and passed the striped feline pet to Hadley. "Remember to feed her _daily_ ," he said with a smile. Hadley sniffled a laugh and nodded. Hadley turned around and headed for the turbolift, which had returned from sending the rest of the crew to the escape pods. Turning around she stared longingly at Chan.

"I'll miss you..."  
Chan stood by the helm station, the bridge was a mess with all the debris from the consoles and ceiling scattered all over the floor. "What do you think Ann and the others would say?" He asked suddenly.

Hadley smiled sadly, "They'd be proud of you, Ben."  
Chan smiled, "I'm proud of _you_ , Rose. I'll see you on the other side."  
Hadley nodded, paused as she sniffed another tear, "Deck 15." The turbolift doors closed behind her. Chan looked around the bridge and nodded to himself. _Captain always goes down with his ship._

Grabbing hold of the helm station, he sat at the chair and studied the controls to familiarize himself. "Computer, status report."

" _All hands have been accounted for and evacuated. Captain Rose Hadley has departed in the Delta Flyer."_

Chan nodded and grinned from ear to ear, thinking of some 20th century song he remembered hearing when he was a kid in the Eugenics War. "Computer, manual override the helm controls."

" _Affirmative. Warning: Warp Core breach imminent... Calculated breach in 3.2 minutes."_ Pulling out the throttle that appeared from the console, he slowly brought the _Phoenix_ to face the Nylock flagship. He could imagine the Nylocks watching the _Phoenix_ coming at ramming speed in horror, which made him smile in amusement. "Take this you bastards," he muttered as he pushed the Sovereign-Class starship at full impulse towards the massive behemoth.

" _Warning: Warp Core breach in .56 minutes. Calculated collision course in .24 minutes."_

Chan closed his eyes tightly, thinking of each face he had the privilege to meet during the Eugenics War and on board the _Phoenix_. Rose. Joe Baker. Ann. Tom. Max. Lyhla. Connor. Robert. Kolez. T'Lera... It was endless. Watching that theorized, and now fact, where life flashes pass your eyes as you are about die, he breathed one last breath before he felt a familiar tingle around his body, but can't seem to place it. The searing heat of the Warp Core's explosion alongside the collision of metals between the two ships came close to his skin and he waited for that final moment of pain.


End file.
